Blood Ties
by HaWing
Summary: Why does Anastasia Steele look so much like Christian's mother? Probably because she's his half-sister.
1. Reality Falls Apart

Christian smirked as Anastasia checked out his purchases at the hardware store. He couldn't wait for her to find out what all these ropes were for. His eyes burned through her, imagining what she would look like tied up for him.

She was perfect, just his type, radiating submissiveness. He could almost hear her begging already.

He savoured the timidness in her voice when she asked, "Will that be everything?"

"No." He grinned, showing her all his teeth. Her eyes looked up at him. He could feel her pinned under his gaze. "I want to see you again. Will you come to my place on Friday?"

A blush light pink blush spread across her cheeks. Christian wanted to tear off her clothes to see if it spread to her chest.

"You mean like a date?"

"Not quite like that," He stifled a chuckle, "but essentially, yes. Will you come?"

Her blush deepened. "I'll have to see…"

He focused his gaze on her, moving his body in a little closer, letting her get a smell of his cologne. He knew damn well no women could resist him.

"... I, I think I can."

"Good. It's a date." He winked at her, gathered his things and walked out of the store.

"Drive." He said as he slid into the back of his chauffeured car. He wasn't a happy go lucky guy, but he couldn't prevent a pleased grin from spreading across his entire face. It was hard to find a good submissive. He'd been too long without one. The tension of unfulfilled sexual desire was almost impossible to contain. He couldn't wait until Friday when he would take out all of his pent up urges on her little body.

He licked his lips. He was going to have to start slow with her. He would enjoy that. It had been a while since he had started with someone so... innocent. His mind started running a mental list of all the toys that were going to strip that innocence away.

His phone rang in his pocket. He snapped out of his internal fantasy.

"This is Christian." He said into the phone.

"Hey, it's Curt."

He remembered Curt. The P.I. He'd hired to dig into Anastasia's background. He didn't expect to hear from him again. He grunted into the phone.

"Looks like there's a piece of information that I missed on this girl."

Christian bolted up in his seat. His fantasy crashed. This could ruin everything.

"Well," He growled into the phone, "What is it?"

"Well it looks like the girl was adopted. Her real parents are dead."

"Oh, is that all?" Christian sat back in the leather seat. "do you have any info for the birth parents?"

"There's no father on record. The mother's name was Ella Smith. Died in Detroit in 1987."

Christian's blood froze in his veins. His heart stopped.

"Is this some kind of a joke?"

The P.I. was clearly confused. "No joke. That's just what I dug up."

"Well it's a mistake."

"I can fax you the records if you want to see them for yourself."

"Do that." Christian ended the call.

The Implication of what Curt had said slowly sunk in, settling like a rock in Christian's stomach.

He threw the phone to the ground. He wanted to scream in frustration. There were at least a million reasons why this was impossible. In no world, in no universe, in no timeline could Anastasia Steele be his sister.

* * *

**_AN: This idea popped into my head and I just had to write it. __Obviously the time line (amongst other things) is a little different here and Anastasia is only two or three years younger than Christian in this story._**


	2. Putting the Pieces Together

Christian crushed the paper in his hand. He didn't know what he'd expected. Probably something to tell him that this was impossible.

But there it was. All of the faxed documents indicated that Ella Smith, his mother, was Anastasia's mother too. She was his sister. He had a sister.

The scabs of an old wound started to scrape off. The sutras, put in place through years of therapy, were coming out. A gaping hole opened inside of him.

He had a family. A real blood relative walking on the earth. The realization of what this meant shuddered down his spine.

Horror overwhelmed him. He had to cancel their 'date'. He cringed. This was the most frustrating situation he had ever encountered.

But the fresh hole inside him glared back, empty. It wanted to see that girl again. It wanted family.

But it still didn't make sense. He couldn't have a sister that he didn't know about. His memories before being adopted were more like dark flashes, but he wouldn't forget something like having a sister.

He took his phone out of his pocket and dialed the P.I.'s number.

"Curt. I want every last piece of information on that girl from before she was adopted. You hear? e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g." He should have fired the guy after the phenomenal blunder of missing that Anastasia was adopted, but getting to the bottom of things was more important than settling the score right now. He paused, something was scratching inside his brain. Then he added, "Get me all the hospital records from when this girl was born."

He hung up the phone. He wouldn't believe anything until he had more information.

He breathed deeply, closed his eyes, tried to use all that stupid shit he learned in therapy to help himself stay calm.

He didn't even know what he wanted to find out anymore. A deep ache groaned inside of him. Did he want her to be his sister so she could be the family that he thought he'd lost? Or did he want her to be some random girl so that he could fuck her?

He just wanted to find some kind of information that would make this make sense because right now it didn't.

()()()()()()()

Anastasia checked her reflection for the hundredth time. This nervousness fluttering through her was so different from anything she had ever felt before. Nothing like the nervousness before an exam. This was an excited nervousness. Anything could happen tonight and she had no idea what to expect, but she knew she wanted it.

She blushed.

She had never been on a date with a guy like him. She had hardly really ever been on a date at all. Just quiet dinners with boring bookworms like herself. Nothing that had ever lead to anything. She could tell that dates with Christian Grey always lead to something.

She was ready for it. She wanted everything that his devilish smile had to offer, everything that his magnetic body was pulling her towards. A nice girl can only stay nice for so long.

She looked over her reflection. She had on the tightest dress in Kate's wardrobe. The black dress was a classic cut, but the tightness forced her cleavage to pop. Her chestnut hair was blown out into flowing curls. Her lips painted soft pink. Yes, she was ready for Christian Grey.

He knocked on the door. It was old fashioned in Ana's opinion. She was used to guys texting her when they were in the driveway.

"Hey!" She smiled at him when she opened the door. Her heart jumped into her throat. He was so F-ing gorgeous.

"Evening." He said. He was stiffer than she had seen him before. Even more than he had been when she interviewed him in his office. Maybe he was just as nervous as she was.

He drove the two of them to a tall condo complex. Her heart did another heavy _thump_. Of course he had never been seen in public with a woman, so it made sense that he would take her back to his home for a date, but she still couldn't help but imagine how conveniently close they would be to his bedroom.

"I hope you don't mind," He said as he opened the car door for her, "I like to keep my private life private."

"Not at all." She tried to shoot him a smile like the one he had given her at the hardware store. She was sure she failed at it. He cleared his throat uneasily. It must have been worse than she though. She made a mental note to not try that again.

His condo was at the very top of the building. Everything about the place was a bachelors dream pad. Ana mentally the words minimalist and cold to it. For someone so private, there were a ton of windows. The place had most phenomenal panoramic view of the city that Ana had ever seen. Everything about this guys life was breathtaking.

"Your place is beautiful." She said.

"Thank you." He smiled. Clearly he was proud of his home. She was glad she made him smile. He was so weird and aloof tonight.

"Can I get you a…" He started speaking then trailed off, seaming to change his mind about what he was going to say.

"a what?"

"Nothing."

Anastasia was starting to feel awkward. This wasn't even remotely what she thought this would be like. Maybe this was what Christian was always like in private. It seemed like a drastic difference between the charismatic playboy persona.

"Nice view." She said, trying to make normal conversation.

"Will you tell me about yourself?" Christian had taken a seat in one of the white minimalist chairs and was eyeing her from across the room. She liked the feeling of his eyes on her. They were hard and intense.

"Well… " She tried to think of where to start. "I just finished a degree in English, I'm hoping to get a job in publishing soon. I have a connection at a company in the city so I've got my fingers crossed."

Christian nodded, a faint smile on his lips, "And before that?"

"Before that?"

"Yes, if you don't mind, did you grow up in Seattle?"

Ana felt his intensity returning. He seemed more like the Christian that she had met in the interview, but somehow different. Still more distant.

"I grew up in Chicago." She smiled.

"You liked it there?"

"Yeah, it was a great place to grow up. I had a pretty great childhood there."

"And your… family?" He got stiff again.

"My dad was majorly strict when I was growing up. A military guy." She laughed, "My mom balanced him out well. She's a total airhead. They split up before I was in high school. I think he got tired of taking care of her."

Christian stroked his bottom lip with his thumb, like he was thinking about what she had said. He started to open his mouth, then closed it with a sharp breath. He opened his mouth again, more slowly, "Sorry to hear that your parents aren't together anymore." He said.

"They're happier this way." Ana shrugged, "and we're still a family and everything."

Christian raised an eyebrow.

She continued, "I mean like, kids always think that when their parents split up it means they're losing their family and maybe that's true for some people, but it wasn't really what happened to our family. We still do holidays together. My parents still care about each other. They just can't stand the thought of living their lives together anymore." She laughed again.

Christian cocked his head slightly, still stroking his lip thoughtfully. Ana wished she could understand what the expression on his face meant. He was so unreadable. She had gone into this 'date' thinking that all he wanted from her was sex. She was quickly understanding that Christian Grey was not as easy as she had assumed.

She was going to have to take matters into her own hands.

She walked over and laid out on the couch next to his chair, letting her long limbs stretch out comfortably. She felt his eyes follow the length of her legs and blushed.

"You sure ask a lot of questions." She said. Every word was loaded with a flirty punctuation. Her inner vixen was taking over. "Not really what I expected from a guy like you." She brushed her fingers over the soft skin of her collar bone.

"Well, Miss Steele, you already got a chance to interview me." His playful smile spread across his face, his playboy attitude showing through. Ana glowed with triumph. She knew he couldn't resist it for long.

"So you're saying this is only fair?" She teased back, looking at him with her doe eyes, accentuating the arch in her back.

He reached out and touched the silky hair hanging over her shoulder. Ana's heart squeezed and thumped in her chest. He brushed her hair behind her neck, his hand leaving goosebumps behind where it had grazed her skin. She could smell his cologne, dark and sensuous. Her lips tingled. She looked into his grey eyes.

Christian blinked. His face suddenly lost it's colour.

"I'm sorry." He stood from the chair quickly and stepped away from Ana. "I'm suddenly not feeling well."

Ana may not have been on many dates in her life, but this was the weirdest one by far. "Should I go?" She asked.

"I'll have someone drive you home."

Christian made a quick phone call and a man appeared at the door to escort Ana home.

"Well thanks for inviting me over." Anastasia said, not really sure what to make of the situation.

"Anastasia," He said as she turned to the door. She stopped. Her name in his mouth sent tingles down her spine, "Thank you for coming." He finished. She turned and left, more confused than she had ever been in her life.

Ana got into the car with the giant man servant and gave him her address. She sat in silence trying to understand what had just happened. Christian Grey flirted with her at the hardware store. Christian Grey invited her over for a _not-quite-a-date_. Christian Grey acted weird and constipated. Christian Grey almost kissed her. Christian Grey feigned illness and sent her home.

These were the pieces and she tried to put them together in a way that made sense. The only thing that she could come up with was that he was insane.

_Unless._

_Oh, my God._

Her hand flew to her mouth, she hid a gasp from the driver in the front of the car.

_Kate was right. Christian Grey is gay._

()()()()()()()

Curt called back before the end of the night. He was clearly trying to get back into Christian's good books.

"I got some info on the hospital records." The sound of papers shuffling came through the phone, "The kid was hospitalized for three weeks after she was born. Went straight into foster care after that she was adopted by Carla and Raymond Steele."

The hair on the back of Christian's neck stood on end. Something about this was starting to add up. "What was she hospitalized for?"

"The kid was premature. She was in the NICU for almost a month. Born September 10, 1987, Hospitalized until October 1, 1987 and adopted by the Steele's on October 27. 1987."

"And her mother," Christian breathed deeply, "When did she die?"

"You didn't ask for any info on the mother."

"Well I'm asking now."

"I'll get the info I can on the mother, but it won't be as easy. She didn't seem to have had a fixed address when the kid was born. There are no records of her visiting the NICU. She never even named the baby. Seems like the kind of woman who doesn't leave much of a trace. The only thing she left behind was the kid."

_The two kids._

He swallowed. "I want you to get me the information surrounding her death."

He didn't really want to know anything about his mother. He wanted to forget that she ever existed. It was easier to do that if he didn't know anything about her. But he had to know more about Anastasia.

With each piece of information that he got, it made more sense. He would have remembered if he had a sister, but could Ella have been pregnant without him knowing? The crackwhore probably wouldn't have bothered to mention it to him. Maybe she didn't even know she was pregnant.

What if Anastasia had been in the hospital when the crackwhore killed herself? It was conceivable that Christian would have never met her. Never knew she existed. His heart was pounding. It almost made sense and that scared him shitless.

* * *

**AN: Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. I want to address questions, but I don't really want to give too much of the story away. All I'll say for now is, hold on because this story is going to get twisty. **

**I love getting reviews with questions that you want cleared up, so please if there's something that I didn't make very clear, let me know and I'll address them in upcoming chapters! :)**


	3. Secrets and Suspicions

Kate was waiting at the door, questions bursting out of her mouth before Anastasia was even inside. "So what was he like? What was his house like? Did he kiss you? Oh my God, how far did you guys go?" She paused absorbing Ana's subdued mood. "You're home pretty early."

Ana's secret quivered on her tongue. She desperately wanted to tell Kate what she had found out about Christian. She looked at Kate, barely containing herself. She smiled, "Everything went well. He's a really nice guy. He wasn't feeling well so we rescheduled."

Kate's sharp eyes scanned Anastasia. "Nice guy? It sounds like things didn't get far between the two of you."

Ana shrugged, trying to hide her disappointment about the way the night had gone, "Maybe I'm not his type."

Kate's eyes narrowed. Ana squirmed. She knew Kate smelled something fishy.

"So when did you reschedule for?" Kate pressed.

"Well we didn't really make any concrete plans."

Kate's eyes narrowed further, "So you're not really going to see him again then?"

Ana squared her shoulders defensively, "I didn't say that."

"Then text him. Tell him that you want to see him again."

Ana's heart pounded against her chest. "Well yeah, I might. I'll see if he texts me first."

"Don't you want to see him again?"

Images flashed through Ana's mind; His lips; His cologne; His body. She shivered. What did she have to lose? "Okay, fine, I'll text him." She took her phone out of her purse. Kate looked eagerly over her shoulder as she typed out; _Thanks for inviting me tonight. Sorry we had to cut it short. I'd love to see you again. Let me know when you're free._

"Perfect!" Kate squealed.

Anastasia kept her nervous attention on her phone all night. After checking her empty inbox for the thirtieth time, she had to admit to herself how much she wanted to hear from Christian Grey. She hit her forehead with the palm of her hand.

_I should never have gotten my hopes up. He's gay. He has to be gay. I'm an idiot._

She tried to distance herself from the thought of him replying to her text and slipped into her pajamas, hoping that a good night's sleep would help to restore her sanity. She sank into bed, actively fighting herself from thinking about what had happened at Christian's house. She twisted the lamp off with a click, letting her head rest on the pillow and her mind relax.

A vibration on the bedside table jolted her up. Her fingers grasped her glowing phone. Her heart skipped a beat when she read Christian's text.

_I'd love to. I'm very booked this week. Would you be able to meet me in my office?_

Ana knew this was stupid. She shouldn't get involved with him. He was weird and confusing and _probably_ gay…

…. but so fucking sexy.

()()()()()()()()

Christian stared out the window into the night. He couldn't stop thinking about her. He didn't want to think about her. He didn't know what to think about her.

There was a moment that night when he thought wanted to fuck her. Hard. When she laid out on the couch and looked at him with that teasing expression, he wanted to grab her and teach her what it really meant to be teased. She would never look at him that way again.

But then he looked into her eyes. Nostalgia stabbed right down the length of his spine. They were his mothers eyes. He didn't need any test to tell him that this girl had his mothers eyes. He had meant it when he told her that he felt sick. His stomach turned every time he thought of her.

Who was she?

Who the fuck was she?

()()()()()()()

Ana tried to swallow any expectations before she left to see Christian. As Kate said, a guy who asks to meet you in his office during the day probably isn't looking for sex.

But he might be.

Ana pictured him throwing her on his desk, pressing his body into hers, breathing hard into her neck.

She pulled her mind from the image she'd created. She wanted to slap herself to keep herself from thinking about him that way again. It wouldn't help her to get any ideas in her head. She knew there was a very good chance that this was all going to end badly.

Christian's secretary showed her to his office. Ana tried to normalize her anxious breathing before she braced herself and entered. Christian was sitting at her desk. He looked like he had been waiting for her. His posture was rigid, his hands clasped in front of him, lips firm, but something in his aura felt like he was as nervous as she was.

"Please, have a seat." He gestured to a pair of comfortable chairs in the corner of his office as he rose and took one for himself.

Ana let her footsteps fall boldly. She was prepared for anything. She sat in the chair across from him and smiled into his eyes, trying to guess what was turning the wheels in his head.

"I'm sorry I had to end things early on Friday."

"I'm just glad you're feeling better." Ana smiled and added saucily, "Knowing you, I'm sure you'll make it up to me."

He cleared his throat. "Yes, well… " his eyes fixed onto hers and he paused, clearly having a difficult time formulating his thoughts. Ana's heart fluttered in her chest. She was losing control of her breathing again.

"...what if I were to offer you a job?"

Her skin prickled. Christian Grey succeeded in catching her off guard again. "Wow." Was all she could think to say, then added. "What is the position?"

"It's a contract position. I just need some help around my office for a few weeks."

Ana felt something uneasy about his offer. "Don't you have a secretary?" She asked.

Christian looked towards the door, in the direction of his secretaries desk, lightly stroking his bottom lip with his thumb. "She wants to take some time off. I'm just looking for someone who can ease up her work load for a bit."

"I don't really have any experience… "

"You answer phones at your job don't you?"

"Yes."

"I'm not really asking you to do much more." That strong, slow smile spread across his face, warming Ana's cheeks.

"I'll let you know if I have the time."

"We can work it around your schedule."

Ana eyed Christian suspiciously. She had no idea what to make of this man. She couldn't help but remind herself again, that there was a very good chance that this would end badly.

"Okay." She said. "Thank you for the opportunity."

Christian smiled again. "No, thank you Miss Steele."

Ana didn't know what was making her feel so uneasy. Something just felt out of place. Nothing in front of her was adding up. Despite her better judgement, she felt the mystery of the situation feeding her interest in Christian Grey.

"So what made you get into an English program?"

Ana was startled by Christian's sudden question. She realized that he had been watching her attentively for a while.

"I don't really know to be honest with you." She laughed. "I was finishing high school and I felt like I had to pick something and it felt right at the time."

Christian smiled. The air between them relaxed. Ana fell into the conversation, slowly forgetting the uneasiness she'd had before as she tried to think of answers to Christian's never ending questions. It seemed like every time she told him something about herself, he wanted to know more.

"Sorry to cut things off again." He said suddenly, looking at his watch. "It's just that I'm on the clock. I have a meeting in five minutes."

Ana remembered where they were. She had let herself get so absorbed with him that everything else had slipped her mind. "Of course."

Christian showed her to the door. "Thank you again for coming Miss Steele." His eyes fell on hers and he looked at her for a moment, almost curiously. Ana's body tightened. She felt like he was holding her with his eyes. His slow voice wrapped around her, "I look very forward to seeing you again."

His intensity robbed her of speech. She tried to recover herself enough to smile shyly and agree to see him again soon, but she cursed herself for turning into mush again. She had to stop letting him get the better of her.

()()()()()()()

When she had gone, Christian turned to his secretary.

"How would you like some paid vacation time?"

* * *

_AN: Thank you so much for waiting for this update! Sorry it took so long. Everything is okay with me. I just didn't have the time to write this chapter. Thank you so much to everyone who's been encouraging me to keep going. I love writing for you!_


	4. What We Share

The situation was far from ideal. Christian was getting his personal life mixed in with business, but he couldn't let this girl get out of his sight. And since he couldn't keep seeing her on 'dates,' this was the most elegant solution.

He had arrived at his office early to prepare himself for her arrival. He was already counting on not getting any work done until he got to the bottom of who this girl was. He checked the messages on his phone. Curt still hadn't called with any additional information on her. He was exhausted thinking about it. Day and night, he thought about the possibilities of her being his sister and the possibilities of her _not_ being his sister, but deep down, Christian already thought he was sure.

Then he had to ask himself, did he really care? Even if they were blood relatives, it's not like they grew up together and he certainly didn't intend on procreating with her. Where was the issue?

He would never call himself the type of man that was in tuned with his feelings. He generally considered them to be irrelevant and frankly cumbersome. This made it all the more irritating that he couldn't shut out the voice inside of himself that begged to know more about this girl and her connection to him.

The final resolution was that he couldn't let this girl have so much power over him, no matter who she was.

()()()()()()()

Ana slid her stockings over her calves. This was it. She was giving Christian Grey one more chance to prove that he wasn't gay. If he didn't go for it, well, it would be his loss, but at least she would know.

She pulled her hair into her best 'dirty librarian' ponytail. At first she had been frustrated that Christian Grey hadn't fucked her stupid on their date (if you could call it that.) But now this had become a game to her and she was bringing things to the next level.

She arrived at the office fifteen minutes early. Christian Grey was already waiting for her.

"Good Morning." She smiled perkily.

"Good morning, Miss Steele." She felt his eyes on her, scanning her from bottom to top, a point in the favour of him being straight straight, "It's nice to see you here early."

"Well I figured since I don't really know anything about your office, I should come in early to get orientated."

Christian stood and walked past her towards the desk in front of his office, "There isn't much to know. Essentially all I'll need you to do is handle the phones and anyone who happens to show up."

He showed her his calendar, and how he expected things to be scheduled and that was it. It seemed pretty fishy that he would have called her in for this, but that only made the whole thing more interesting. What did Christian Grey want from her?

She knew what she wanted from him. Her eyes traced the strong line of his shoulders, imagining what they would look like with his suit off, arms bare, surrounding her body.

"Is something wrong, Miss Steele?" Christian caught her in the middle of her daydream.

"No, I… " Her eyes honed in on something behind him, "... I was just wondering about that woman in the photo on your desk."

Christian turned, following Anastasia's gaze to a photo on his desk of himself and a young woman. If it was his wife or girlfriend, it would explain why he hadn't made a move on her when she had gone to see him. Maybe he had invited her over with the intention of having sex with her, but then felt guilty and had a change of heart. Anastasia burned indignantly at the thought that he would have involved her in his affair without telling her.

"That's my sister, Mia."

Rats. Back to square one.

"It doesn't really seem like you to have family photos on your desk." Ana put a finger to her lip thoughtfully, "Didn't you say something about keeping your private life private?"

"You're right." Christian chuckled, "My sister gave that to me and I'm afraid to move it incase she drops in one day and sees that it's not there."

A smile spread across Ana's face. She didn't know that this side of Christian Grey existed. "Are you and your sister close?"

"What would make you think that?" He said quickly, "I mean, we're as close as siblings typically are. Do you have any siblings?"

Ana noted how quickly he turned the subject back onto her. She shook her head. "No my parents decided that I was more than enough to handle, but I always wished I had a bother or a sister."

Christian's eyebrows raised by a half a millimeter. "You should be careful what you wish for."

Ana laughed, "I think you're really lucky to have a sister. Especially one that cares about you so much. I remember as a kid, asking my parents to adopt another baby, but they had their hands full enough with me and their own problems."

Suddenly she felt the full force of Christian's attention. "Where you adopted?"

"Yeah, my parents adopted me when I was a baby or something— before I had any memories anyways. I never really asked about it because I always figured these were my parents, you know?"

"I understand what you mean." He seemed to consider something for a moment before saying, "I was adopted as well."

"Oh, so you really do understand." Anastasia looked into his eyes, sharing something with him that she rarely shared with people. A kind of understanding that he knew where she came from, what her experiences were, the differences in her life that were impossible to explain to people who hadn't lived them. Christian placed his hand on hers.

A warm shock ran through her. She realized that she had been taking him for granted. Maybe his relationship with her had nothing to do with sex. Maybe he had been looking for something else entirely. All she'd been treating him like a walking cock. She felt like such an asshole.

And then he kissed her.

And it was raw, and it was carnal, and it was dirty, and it was everything she'd wanted.

* * *

_AN: Hopefully this makes up for keeping you waiting so long for the last update. ;) _

_A couple of people have asked about Elena. At present I have no intention of involving her in this story. Chiefly because I don't see her serving a purpose in this plot, but also because she played roles in both of my other FSOG stories and bleh, I'm just sick of her._

_sooo... Let me know what you think. I aim to please!_


	5. Missed Connections

Christian felt the surprise on her lips. He pressed himself into Anastasia, completely giving in to the hunger that was urging him towards her. Every other thought faded into the background and disappeared, drowned out by the pounding in his chest. He couldn't remember the last time a girl had that effect on him. Maybe never.

Then she kissed him back and his mind screamed at him, _What the hell are you doing?_

He tore away from her, almost throwing her back from himself. "I'm sorry." He breathed heavily, "I shouldn't have done that."

"Don't apologize." She said, leaning into him, "I wanted you to."

He stepped back, increasing the distance between them, "No. That shouldn't—" His rational brain started to resurface and he was horrified at what he had done. "I was just confused for a moment. _I should not have done that_."

Anastasia shook her head."Well I'm fucking confused right now." She put a hand to her furrowed brow, "I don't know what your deal is, Christian Grey, but I'm pretty done with it." She thrust her hand out, "I mean are you gay, are you married, are you repressed? Why are you screwing around with me like this?"

Christian tried to compose himself. He couldn't tell her what was really going through his head, not now that he'd kissed her. Besides, what if he was wrong?

He cleared his throat, "I should be honest with you."

Anastasia rolled her eyes, "Yuuup."

"I never meant for things to go in that direction. My interest in you was strictly platonic from the beginning."

"Bullshit."

"Excuse me?"

"I say that's total bullshit. All these mind games. You're gay, or confused, or _something_." Her eyes burned with accusation. "Tell me I'm wrong."

"Anastasia, I already addressed that question in our interview."

"Well you're avoiding it now, so what am I supposed to think? Maybe I should go back and add that to Kate's article about you."

Christian realized with annoyance that this girl was too clever for him to lie to. He walked across the room and sat at his desk. He had no choice left, but to backtrack. "You're right, I have been keeping things from you." He breathed, folded his hands in front of himself and said and a slow, authoritative voice, "Simply put, I'm not in a position where I'm sure if I can allow myself to be attracted to you."

Anastasia huffed and rolled her eyes again, "I'm not even going to ask what that means because I'm sure you won't tell me." She had de-escalated and was speaking in a calm voice that matched his own, "But if that was the case, why did you ever get involved with me to begin with? What the hell was your motivation?"

Her words stuck inside of him. It was probably a question that he should have asked himself a while ago. "I don't know." He said truthfully.

"Look Christian, I don't know if you're really being honest with me or what, but I'm not playing around. When I first met you, I just wanted to fuck you. Then I accidentally got to know you, and I started to think I might actually like you. That's it. That's my deal." she picked up her purse and turned to the door. "Call me if you ever figure out yours."

And just like that, he blew it. Her name sat on his lips, he wanted to call after her, but there was nothing else he could say if he did, so he just sat there and watched her leave.

He picked up his phone to call his P.I., cursing the incompetent asshole. If Curt had discovered the possibility that Anastasia might be his sister from the beginning he would never have let himself think about her that way. He thought about billing him for all the extra therapy he was going to need after this.

The phone rang and went to voice mail.

He placed it back on his desk. He should just drop this. All of it. It wasn't often that he had a terrible idea, but this had most definitely been one of them. He could not be around Anastasia because he couldn't think of her as his sister, whether she was or not.

The ringer on the phone went off. Christian practically jumped. He picked it up, clearing his throat. "Christian Grey speaking."

"Hey!" It was Mia's voice coming through the phone.

Her call caught him off guard. "Hey, do you need something?"

"Gee wiz, you're in a mood."

"Sorry. Rough morning."

"Yikes, it's not even 8:30 yet."

"Yeah… "

"Okay well I have a favour to ask."

He leaned back in his chair, placing his feet on his desk, "So then you do need something."

"Need? No. Want? Yes."

"What is it?"

"Well, I was invited to a gallery opening for a photographer that I bought some work from a while back, but—"

"What? You need money?"

"You're such an ass."

"Okay, what?"

"I was going to ask if you would come with me."

He mentally groaned. "I don't know if that will be possible."

"Are you just making up an excuse?"

"Yes."

"What? Do you have a problem going on a date with your sister?"

Christian coughed, "I have very grave problems about going in a date with my sister."

"But you'll do it right?"

"I will join you at the gallery opening, yes."

Her voice beamed through the phone and he could picture the smile on her face. She made it far too easy to want to do things for her. "Okay, I'll see you tonight. Love you bye!"

"Yup. Bye."

Christian hung up the phone. Mia was a difficult person to say no to. Besides, It would be better to keep himself busy.

()()()()()()()()

He picked Mia up when he left the office. She slid into the car, took one look at him and said, "Oh great, you're in a mood."

"You look good too." He said without looking at her.

Mia didn't acknowledge his sarcasm, "Well try to perk up before we get there. It's super awkward going out in public with you when you're… " She gestured up and down his body, "... this."

He looked over to his sister, a half a smile tugged at his lips, "I'll try, but I'm not promising anything."

Why wasn't it like this with Anastasia? If she was really his sister then why did he feel so differently around her than he did with Mia? When he looked at the facts, Anastasia had to be his sister, but he did not, could not feel that way about her. That connection just wasn't there.

Christian sighed, turned to Mia and said, "Can I ask you something?"

"Yes?" She said it more like a question than a statement.

"What did you think when you met your birth parents?"

Mia leaned her head back and whistled, "Jeezus that's a big one."

Three years ago, Mia had contacted her birth parents. She met them for coffee twice, then never spoke to them again. Christian had never asked why. He didn't really want to acknowledge it.

"Sorry." He said, trying to alleviate the awkwardness.

"No. It's cool." She paused, thinking, the silence was full and heavy. After a few minutes she spoke slowly, a little unsure of how to put her feelings into words, "It was kind of not what I expected."

Christian cleared his throat. Emotional conversations were not his specialty and he was hoping that this wouldn't go that way. "Was that a bad thing?"

"No. It was just kind of… disappointing in a way? Like I thought it would be this big emotional thing, but I didn't really feel anything when I met them. They were nice people, but they were just strangers." She got quiet, "They didn't even really look like me."

Christian was silent. He didn't know what to say to that. After a minute, Mia continued, "I know it makes you angry that I wanted to meet them."

Christian was caught off guard, "When did I say that?"

"Your face usually does all the talking for you." She snorted.

"I was only angry at the time." His grip on the steering wheel tightened. "I felt like you thought that our family wasn't good enough…. and I was jealous in a way."

"That's understandable."

"No, It was selfish."

"Yeah, but it's still understandable." She sighed, "I was never trying to replace our family. I was trying to find something that I thought was missing, but when I met them, it just wasn't there… It was like it didn't matter that they were where I came from. They weren't my family."

She put her hand on Christian's arm and squeezed gently. "My family are the people who have shared my life with me."

He felt like he should say something. He looked away from her and muttered, "Yeah."

Mia's advice was solid. It didn't matter who Anastasia was. Even if she was his sister, they didn't have any history together, they would never have that kind of relationship. And if she wasn't, well, he'd already screwed that up. There were plenty of other women to be his subs. He'd just forget he'd ever met her.

They arrived at the gallery and he realized why Mia hadn't wanted to go alone. As soon as they entered, every male eye in the room shifted to her. He felt bad for who ever the artist was, having her steal the focus off his work.

"If I had known that all you wanted was a bodyguard, I would have just sent one."

Mia rolled her eyes, "But then I would miss out on your delightful conversation."

Christian grunted.

He looked around, already slightly bored. The photography wasn't bad. Christian recognized a few pieces that Mia had hung in her apartment.

He resigned himself to following Mia around, acting as her surly security detail. After three or four photos, they all started to look the same and his overall opinion was that the artist lacked originality. Mia led the way into a smaller room, painted all in white, where just a few large pieces hung with uplighting to emphasize their status. Christian's heart thudded against his rib cage. Across the room, blown up on a ten by ten canvas, Anastasia's eyes were looking down at him, holding him in their gaze.

"Wow, I love that one." Mia said.

His voice growled from his chest, "I want to burn it."

"What?"

"Nothing." He shut his mouth sharply, turning his back to the photo.

"Oh, there's the photographer!" Mia said suddenly, pointing to a man a little younger than Christian. He had two drinks and was handing one to a young woman who appeared to be his date. By the look of her posture, it was at least her sixth drink. She turned unsteadily so they could see her face. The beating in Christian's chest tripled in force. It was Anastasia Steele.

"We should go."

"Okay." Mia looked concerned by his sudden shift in demeanor.

Christian was relieved that she didn't argue with him. He just wanted to get out of Anastasia's presence. They started to the door when a man cut into their path.

"Mia Grey!" He touched her bare shoulder. "How have you been?"

Mia smiled politely. "I'm good. I haven't seen you since..." She trailed off. It was clear to Christian that she didn't recognize this man. His eyes shifted to the corner of the room where Anastasia had been. At first he didn't see her, then he saw the photographer leading her away by the hand. A hard rock dropped into his stomach.

"I'm sorry, we have to go." He cut into the conversation, a little sharper and moodier than the guy deserved.

He looked taken aback, but kept his cool, "Okay well it was great seeing you again." He gave Mia a quick hug before Christian all but pushed past him to get out of there.

Christian led the way out the door. A warm breeze blew through the terrace garden. Mia had to half jog to keep up with him, her heels on the stone punctuating the drumming in his chest.

"He slow down, buddy." Mia stumbled, almost falling before catching herself on Christian's arm. "That guy was a loser, but we don't need to run away from him."

"Sorry." He helped Mia steady herself. Then he froze. Anastasia was sitting on a bench in front of them. Leaning into her, preparing to make his move, was the greasy photographer. A growl rose up in Christian's throat.

Anastasia's words were slow and slurred, "Jose, you're one of my best friends. I just don't—"

Christian continued slowly, like his feet didn't want to let him leave her. He urged them to move faster. He didn't want to see this.

"Ana, you know there's more to this than friendship." Jose leaned in closer to Anastasia, almost placing his lips on hers.

Christian actively fought red hot burning hatred towards him. He shouldn't be feeling anything about this. Jose had every right to make a move on her. Anastasia wasn't his... anything.

"I really like you, Jose..."

Christian's stomach turned. He kept walking, letting the couple pass from his vision, hoping she hadn't seen him.

"... I just don't feel that way about you."

"Just give it a chance."

Adrenaline pumped into Christian's veins. His fists clenched. His body screamed at him to turn around.

_She's a big girl. This is none of my business._

Then her voice reached his ears, high pitched and desperate, "Jose, stop!"

Christian turned, his willpower broken. In less than a second, he was grabbing the photographer by the collar of his shirt, tearing him from Anastasia, resisting the urge to break his neck. Christian wanted to hit him. He wanted to break his arms. He wanted to leave him so broken and bruised that they would need dental records to identify his body. He breathed. His fist let go of the shirt, dropping him to the ground in a heap. He growled, "Beat it, kid."

Jose cowered and scrambled away. Anastasia was visibly shaken. She stood, wobbled, then fell forward towards the pavement. Christian rushed to catch her, enveloping her in his arms.

"Holy shit." Mia stepped forward, "Do you know this girl?"

"She's a friend."

"She's wasted."

Christian let go of Anastasia, trying to help her stand. "We're taking her home."

Mia helped Christian get Anastasia to the car and he made sure she was buckled into the back seat. He turned on his GPS. "Anastasia, can you tell me your address?"

Anastasia mumbled something incomprehensible.

"Pardon me?"

"... Maple Street…"

"What's the house number?"

Anastasia didn't say anything. He thought she had fallen asleep, then she bent over and started dry heaving,

"Err, maybe just start driving." Mia suggested, clearly hoping that she could get out of the car before Anastasia started puking all over it. At that moment in time, Christian couldn't believe he had been attracted to her.

Mia's apartment was just a few minutes away. As she got out of the car she said, "Thanks for coming with me tonight." Then looked to Anastasia who had passed out in the back, "And good luck with that."

Christian reached into the back seat and nudged Anastasia's shoulder. She shifted, but didn't wake up. At least he could tell she was alive.

He started the car, heading for home. Of course he had all her information, including her address, but he wasn't enough of a stalker to have actually memorized it. Even if was, he couldn't leave her alone in this state.

He opened the door and scooped her body out of the seat. She was lighter than he expected. Her eyelids lifted, her voice was soft and sleepy,"I knew you were gay." She mumbled before her head lolled back and she closed her eyes again.

Christian groaned, hoping no one would see him carrying an unconscious drunk girl inside. He decided to put her to sleep on his the couch since she had been in that room once before, so she wouldn't be waking up in a place that she didn't recognize. It also lacked the startling implications of waking up strange bed.

Christian lay her limp body down, covering it with a blanket and went back to his fantasy of murdering the photographer. What was that jackass doing, bringing her drinks when she was already drunk? Then on top of that, he tried to make a move on her when she was clearly in no state to consent to anything. Christian's mind flirted with the ugly idea that maybe the creep had put something in the drink. He regretted not hitting him at least once… or twice... or beating him into a bloody pulp.

His phone chirped in his pocket. He must have missed a call while he was dealing with this mess. He took it out and looked at the missed number, his chest tightening as he played the message back.

"Christian, It's Curt. Sorry I missed your call. I have all the information I could get on Ella Smith. I'll fax it all over in the morning."

* * *

_AN: Here's the longer chapter that I promised a couple people. _Thanks for sticking around and reading!_ I guess the last chapter totally creeped a lot of people out, and all I can say is that I totally respect that._


	6. Stalemate

Anastasia's head pulsed and throbbed as she sat up. Shock spread over her. She didn't know where she was. She eased herself up and looked around the room as dim grey morning light filtered through the window and she realized that she did know where she was. She had been there once before. It was Christian Grey's penthouse.

Even more shock.

What was she doing here?

Her head squeezed and throbbed even harder as she hazily recalled the events of the previous night. Christian might have deserved an apology, or a thank you, or something. He definitely did not deserve to have her snoop through his house, which is what she promptly began doing. She told herself it was her Kavanagh coming out, but what she wouldn't admit to herself was that it was her growing fascination with Christian Grey driving her to find out more about this secretive, possibly gay, man.

She was disappointed to find how normal and boring his home was. Something about Christian had led her to believe that he was the type of man that had secrets, the dark kind, the kind that no one ever wants to see the light of day. Ana figured he'd put her through enough that she deserved to know what it was. Or at least that was the excuse she used to relieve the criminal guilt that she felt from sneaking around his house while he was sleeping.

Nothing in his home was giving any indication of what those secrets might be. There was nothing in the medicine cabinet besides toothpaste. His refrigerator looked pretty normal, nothing that would indicate, say, an eating disorder or something. What was this man hiding? He had to be hiding something! No one is that weird, confusing and constipated without having some kind of secret.

Her hand fell on a doorknob. It didn't budge. The door was locked. Her spine tingled, finally an indication that he was keeping something secret, or at least private. She wasn't crazy. There was something secretive about him.

Or maybe it was just an office that he didn't want people getting into. She sighed. Then something startled her. The crunching, cranking noise of a printer was coming from one of the other closed doors. Her breath slowed and her skin prickled as she followed the sound. The door where the noise was coming from opened to a small home office where a fax machine was cranking out crisp white paper.

_So that wasn't his office behind the locked door. Hmmm…_

Ana walked to the printer, her heart in her throat. Christian Grey was really going to kill her if he found her here.

_Fuck him._

She picked up one of the pieces of paper coming off the printer, fully expecting some kind of boring work document, but hoping for something that would shed some light on what Christian wanted from her. Her eyes scanned the page. Her breath caught in her throat as she picked out her own name and then her heart stopped as she realized what was on the document.

"What the fuck are you doing in here?"

Ana turned. Christian was standing at the door with a gigantic, ferocious vein bulging in his temple. His hands clenched and unclenched.

"I should ask you what the fuck you're doing with this!" Ana through the papers at him. "Why do you have all this information about me?" She had been caught red handed, but so had he.

Sweat beaded on the ugly vein in Christian's forehead. His voice had a frightening amount of control. "You should not have been in here so I see that as a moot point."

"No, it fucking is not!" Anastasia wanted to cower behind the desk, but her fury kept her on her feet.

Christian's hands clenched and unclenched again. The angry vein pulsed. He opened his mouth and his tone was polite, if not tense, "Then shall we sit down and have a civil conversation about this?"

* * *

_AN: It's been way too long since I've updated! If you read my other stories, you know it's because I've been publishing a few novelettes and if you don't read my other stories then you should read my other stories. I know this chapter was short and answered nothing, but next chapter will, promise!_


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